BAPEN's 'Malnutrition Matters' campaign wins major European Award

MNI, the Medical Nutrition International Industry group working in partnership with ESPEN has awarded its first ever prize (worth €30,000) for fighting malnutrition to the UK’s BAPEN (British Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition).

Professor Marinos Elia, Chair of BAPEN, accepting the award at the ESPEN Conference (Florence, 15 September 2008) said: "I am delighted to accept this significant award on behalf of BAPEN. This recognises the excellent work of many BAPEN members across the UK who have worked hard to deliver this result.

"BAPEN's long-term, multi-initiative ‘Malnutrition Matters’ campaign to bring this issue to the top of the agenda with politicians, professionals, patients, the press and the public has helped create a ‘tipping point’ in the UK and within the EC. There is now formal recognition that malnutrition is a major public health issue for people of all ages, in the community as well as in care and hospital
settings across Europe as well as in the UK.

"The impact of malnutrition on the individual is significant, well-documented and increasingly recognised. The impact on healthcare budgets is immense - £7.3 billion – more than obesity.

Professor Elia concluded “Malnutrition must no longer go unrecognised and untreated. This financial award, coupled with our long-term commitment and enthusiasm, will support BAPEN’s efforts to continue to raise awareness of and fight malnutrition across all ages, populations and settings.”

Flemming Morgan Chairman of MNI’s Executive (and President of Danone Medical Nutrition Division) on awarding the prize to BAPEN said: "BAPEN’s programme of work to fight malnutrition is the only programme, measured against the criteria set for this award, to have not only established the prevalence and the clinical impact of malnutrition but also its economic cost to health care systems. BAPEN has taken a strong lead in fighting malnutrition by providing practical solutions to this major clinical and public health problem and richly deserves this award."

BAPEN’s effective work within the UK include its national Nutrition Screening Week, measuring the prevalence of malnutrition on admission to health and care settings, its healthcare economic report detailing the financial impact on national and local budgets, and the ‘MUST’ a screening tool and flow chart for easy use across all settings to identify those at risk of malnutrition.

BAPEN’s 2008 ‘Malnutrition Matters’ Conference (Harrogate 4/5 November) will continue the charity’s efforts to raise awareness of malnutrition and its impact, present new evidence regarding and debate methods of addressing this major public health and clinical problem.

Applications to the Best Initiative to Fight Malnutrition award 2008

In 2008, 8 organizations have submitted their work for consideration for the 2008 MNI grant of EUR 30.000.